The Legend of the 2017 Ford Bronco – It’s Back and Badder Than Ever!

By Peter Fowler31 Aug 2016

Ford are yet to officially comment on this subject, but remembering the success of the legendary predecessor of this car, it can be assumed that Ford will not miss the opportunity to enrich its range with another bestseller. Recently, there have been persistent rumors that the company management is going to bring the Bronco back in the near future. They are supported by some respected publications. Based on current forecasts, it can be expected that the test mule will appear not earlier than the second-quarter of 2017, and that the car will not appear on sale earlier than the end of 2017 or beginning of 2018.

2017 Ford Bronco With Nitrous Oxide… Really?

There are plenty of rumors saying that the Bronco was the first car exhibiting a diesel engine with so-called “nitro boosts” – a supply system involving cylinders of nitrous oxide used in street racing competitions.

N20 is supplied to the engine when the system gets activated – either through full-throttle or when the driver presses a special button on the steering wheel

In something like a road car, it would then run through a progressive controller (you can’t just deliver an instant 50 BHP shot without some damage, either to the transmission or engine) meaning that the power boost would come in over a couple of seconds.

Previous generation Bronco

That’s how Bronco might look like

2017 Bronco Goes All Fast and Furious

In a mode of “fast and furious” the car accelerates through a 400-meter section 3 seconds faster. However, you are unlikely to participate in street races using the Bronco – it is still a real SUV. According to the plan of the designers, the use of nitro should help to navigate impassable roads, whereby the car will require “bursts of power” to overcome obstacles. But… and it’s a BIG but… this is never going to happen. Ford may mock something up for show, but as for going into production – never. The logistics don’t work for a start – a 25 lb bottle holding a 10 lb charge of gas lasts about three minutes in total – that’s hardly convenient.

Besides, nitrous is great fun when you have the sort of car like you’d see in the films, but out in the real world, you could have some major issues if it goes wrong – leading to a terminal engine meltdown in seconds if the nitrous/gas mix isn’t correct. Couple that to a few thousand dollars extra on top of the asking price and you can see that nitrous oxide may be great fun (it is laughing gas after all) but it really isn’t practical and no manufacturer would ever consider fitting a system to standard road car – the liability would be horrendous.

Bronco concept front view

Side view of concept

Rear view of Bronco concept car

Primeval 2017 Ford Bronco

The exterior of the car is deliberately primitive and brutal. The Bronco has a square shape as if cut from a single piece of metal. From this totally square appearance the only things that stands out are the large round xenon headlights, squeezed onto the sides of the rough grille lattice in the middle of which is flaunted the inscription “Bronco”.

Duratorq Diesel Power for Bronco 2017

The most interesting facet of the Bronco is under the hood. Unlike its predecessors, built with powerful multi-liter powertrains, the Bronco concept has only got under the hood a two-liter diesel Duratorq TDCi, manufactured by one of the European offices of the company. With a relatively small volume, this 16-valve engine is equipped with a Common Rail, develops 128 HP and torque of 330 Nm at 1800 rpm. But this is not the limit. The Bronco is equipped with a system designed to give an emergency power increase, required, for example, to climb a steep slope. By supplying fuel to the cylinders under high pressure, the torque can increase at times to 350 Nm. The engineers did not stop there.

Possible interior design of Bronco

5-liter V8 engine

Styling of the Ford Bronco 2017

The interior of the new Bronco is made in the same minimalist style. On the instrument panel are located two circular “nests” for the speedometer and the dash for the odometer and navigation systems, including a stylized compass. Above the lockable glove box there is a convenient handle for the front passenger. The Bronco concept has only two seats. All the rest of the space can take the cargo. The roof of the car consists of two parts. The rear can be removed separately, making the Bronco a beach jeep. The door of the luggage compartment pulls sideways, providing easy access inside.

More photos of Bronco concept

Experts say that serial Bronco might get some concept styling features

But mostly this concept car designed for tribute the classic off-roader

Designed for off-road

The Bronco is equipped with the latest 6-speed PowerShift transmission, among other things, significantly saving fuel. The engine and gearbox work together with the electronic all-wheel drive intelligent 4WD System, which has been mounted on the production version of the Ford Escape SUV since 2005. The system is fully computer controlled, requiring no driver intervention. Under normal conditions the car is driven only by the front wheels, but as soon as the slightest hint of a skid occurs, the transmission, using data from a sensor placed under each wheel and under the gas pedal, determines the amount of torque you need to throw on the rear wheels.

What do you think of the upcoming Bronco? Is it the legend that everyone says? Do you think fitting nitrous would be a smart move? Let us know in the comments – we value your opinion!

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Comments

Jeff Lynn

I’ll take it!

Carmen f volpe

So anyone that owns a classic Ford Bronco well I hate to tell you but they’re remaking the Ford Bronco again so your 1997 Ford Bronco that you have been holding onto for your whole entire life waiting for it to become a classic you might as well forget about it now they just made a 2017 where to go Ford good job

Zenithon

If you have a 1997 Ford Bronco, you had better hold onto it, since you have the only one. The Bronco was out of production in 1997.

Carmen f volpe

I have a 1989 Mercury Cougar VIN number 01 I dare Ford to remake this vehicle oh yeah it’s Mercury antique on its way to become a classic under a hundred thousand original miles all original car still getting 44 miles per gallon V6

The rumors about the Scrambler – pickup truck based on legendary Jeep Wrangler, has been fluctuating for quite a long time. And this is not talky talk – there are plenty of spy shots showing the actual testing of such vehicle. Nevertheless, the lack of information prevails.

After a break of 21 years, Ford have decided to bring the Bronco back from the dead, and they’ve done it with a bang. The trick for the Ford designers is to take the classic styling cues from the original Bronco and incorporate them in to the new model – giving it a retro look with modern feel. Will they manage it successfully?

The new Navigator has gorgeous look, making it even more distant from same platform Expedition. The product car has recently revealed – it’s design is very similar to the concept car. With powerful 450 HP engine it is likely to have success in premium SUV market.

Back in 2011, Ford stopped production of the mid-size ranger pickup truck, at least in the U.S. Ever since then, Ranger fans have been waiting for Ford to announce a comeback for the model. For a while, it looked as though Ford were going to put the Ranger back in to production at their Mexico plant, but thanks to an agreement with the United Auto Workers trade union, they changed that to the Michigan plant.